Small But Mighty was my first science unit. For this unit I learned all about the immune system and public health. Through three keystones and 1 finish line project, we were answered the driving question: “How can our knowledge of cell biology contribute to public health?”.
This whole project was really fun. For keystone 1 we got to do lots of hands on work. We made Petri dishes, and a field journal documenting the progress to answer the driving question: How do we interact with microorganisms here at school? With the petri dish’s and the field journal, we had to make a hypothesis and prediction. Mine was “The washrooms that are used more then others will have more microorganisms”.
I really enjoyed this project, because normally we don’t get to do hands-on work like this for our projects! I also really liked coming up with a hypothesis because it made me use my brain in a way I don’t think I normally do. It felt like a challenge to come up with an original hypothesis I liked, and actually wanted to answer. It took me a while, but I am happy with it.
My next keystone (#2), was making my immune system character cards. We learned about the immune system, before this keystone, specifically about the B-cells, T-cells, Antibodies, White blood cells, and macrophages. We then made a “character” card for each of these. I based all of my character cards off of “Barbie Life In The Dream House” characters, because I will forever be a #barbiegirl.
This project was really fun because I got to draw each character. I hadn’t drawn in a while, so it was a reason to use my creativity again. I wasn’t feeling to confident about how I did though. We didn’t just draw for our character cards, we also had to write about them, and what each cell did. I feel like I could have given a better description, but I was feeling rushed because we didn’t have as much time as I would have liked.
The third keystone might have been my favourite. For this keystone, we got to make posters de-bunking a myth about vaccines. I made a poster with my partner Izzy, de-bunking the myth about microchipping through vaccines.
I really enjoyed this project because I got to work with my friend Izzy, and learn about people’s theories on microchipping. I have always been interested in conspiracy theories, the government using microchipping as one of them. I loved doing research about it, because getting to find all the reasons to why this didn’t work was like a puzzle. I had to find lots of little pieces to build into one big piece. I found lots of really good articles on people de-bunking this myth, and then reading people disagree with them. I also really liked that this project reflected real-world issues. Lots of people don’t get vaccines, and that effects everyone. Making this poster could hopefully give people a new look on vaccines, and make them re-think their decision.
The last thing I made was a public health poster for kids. This project was pretty simple. All we had to do was incorporate a drawing of a pathogen made by elementary schoolers, have a snappy slogan, and show your knowledge over what we learned this past month. Other then this project, I am confident I did well throughout the unit. This finish line project is something I am not so confident about. I feel like my poster add a lot less detail then others, and was missing some elements. I noticed lots of peoples had facts on them, while mine doesn’t. I know I don’t have to do what everyone else does, but it is something I wish I could have incorporated into it.
Overall, I am very happy with this unit, and am over proud of my work!
How do you think I did?
For this humanities project I got to create a historically accurate diary made by Christopher Columbus. This diary had to answer the driving question: “What sparked global exploration and what was the impact?”.
I had lots of fun with this project, coming up with ways to talk about events that lead up to European exploration while still making it seem like a journal was a real challenge that got my brain working. I also had a word limit (I may have gone a little over) which made it really difficult to fit all the information I needed and wanted, and making sure story actually sounded good. I think I did really well with this project, and I think I shared what sparked global exploration and what were the impacts really well. I had to write in the first person, so talking about the future is really difficult and different. I really liked this final project for this unit because it challenged me.
I did notice throughout this project I got a little “lost”. I was very unsure of what my diary had to look like, and seemed to be struggling to stay on task. In the future, I think I have to continuously remind myself to stay focused, because it was all the little things I missed that left me so unsure.
I hope your read my book, and I hope you enjoy it!
Do you think it answers the driving question?
I made my Triptych with the editing app SuperimposeX! I used historical paintings from the Renaissance, with the historical innovations to create each panel (except the middle because I didn’t need historical innovations for that one!). I also had to edit my face into each panel, because my Triptych is staring me!
Learning about the Renaissance was a journey for me; it started hard, but slowly became easier. It was hard for me at first because I was learning so much information so fast, and I had to takes NOTES! I was very overwhelmed, but as I took more and more notes, I got used to it, and it stared becoming helpful. Because I was learning so much, it was hard to remember everything. But as I took notes, I would have a page of the information I need, and could always look back too.
From this project I took two important things; the skill of photoshop, and being able to take notes again(and actually appreciate them!). I was really happy with this projects, even with its ups and downs, ending with a Triptych I know I worked hard on and am proud of. I also think I answered the driving question: “How did ideas from Europe and Asia change the world?”.
Do you think I answered the driving question?
Read More About My Triptych Here!
Ideas from Europe and Asia changed the world by creating some of the greatest thinkers, authors, scientists and artists in human history. Without these people we wouldn’t have important everyday items, like technology, such as iPhones and computers. During the Renaissance, there were important movements, like Martin Luther’s 95 theses, which affected society. His 95 theses was against the church, and because he could share it so fast with so many people, it made real change. Without the scientists during the renaissance, we might not be as far ahead with medical innovations and knowledge, or information about space. Without the Renaissance, our lives would be different, our advances in technology and science would be different, and our world views would be different.
New ideas in the Renaissance changed the Renaissance world by creating a sufficient way to measure time, a way for people to see, and a way to easily spread/duplicate information. Measuring time was something people could already do, but by creating the mechanical clock, time could be measured more exactly. This was so important because it created structure in everyday life. People being able to see was also very important, wether with a microscope to see smaller objects, or with glasses for people with visual impairments. Spreading information was, in my opinion, one of the most significant innovations at the time. Having the printing press led to change, growth, life, and death, just by being able to share an opinion to a larger group of people quickly.
Traditional ideas that people had before the Renaissance weren’t as efficient, effective, and easy to use. The hourglass, for example, was inaccurate most of the time, and could never give your the actual time, rather just how long it had been since the last time you flipped it. The hourglass was a helpful, but inefficient, and needed to be changed. Copying writing was also an issue, because it would take hours and hours to hand write a copy of a book, for only one new book to be made. This process took so long, while also making access to education more minimal. Even a common book is educational, and the fact that only people with wealth could have them was wrong and negatively affected society.
New ideas from the Renaissance changed my world today by leading to proper healthcare, proper education, and technology. Without proper healthcare, I might not even be alive(every 4th child born during the Renaissance died within the first year, a big part of that coming from poor healthcare)! There have been many times where I, or people I know, have gone to the hospital, and gotten the help they need, sometimes even life saving. Having a proper education is also something that has “changed my world”, because the more I learn, the more I can grow as a person, learn about myself, and hopefully help the world. Technology has changed my world as well, which was effected by significant innovations in the Renaissance, such as lenses and the printing press. Technology affects me because I use it everyday, in school or at home, and having constant new information right in the palm of my hands affects my opinions and worldview.
The greatest thinkers, authors, scientists and artists during the Renaissance changed the world. Without them we would not be where we are today.
Welcome back to by blog!
This week in maker, I learned how to use sketches pro to make beautiful art! I experimented with colours, shapes, and lines to become the artist I am!
At the end of the week, I put all of my artwork into book to present to the world. My art reflects the skills I have learned, and the process I have made, even in this short period of time!
I hope you enjoy!
As I make my way through the start of high school, I am becoming more familiar with myself; strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes, and learning habits. These traits of mine effect my work, my mindset, and my overall well-being.
I always find myself with strengths and weaknesses that are very similar, like my perfectionism. Being a perfectionist helps me stay motivated to work on projects to my full extent, but becomes a problem when I start to “care too much”. This happened to me when I was working on my Crusades project in humanities. I had to create a learning resource about the crusades, which seems pretty straightforward. But not for me. I had reached a point where I was writing paragraphs on paragraphs until I was satisfied with my work. I made many slideshows, with very detailed hand drawn images, which I spent so much time on, until I was finally happy with it. This caused me spending long hours at night, causing tried or emotionally drained. I look back at this project, and am happy with how it came out, but disappointed of my proses to create it. I still do this for lots of projects, but I am slowly getting better at not putting such high expectations on myself, or “caring a little less”, in my mind.
I still need to appreciate my perfectionism, though. Like I said earlier, it can keep me motivated to work on projects as best as I can, even when they create challenges, or I come to a problem. I noticed this when I was working on my exhibition project, Pandoras Box. I got to create a box which had an artifact from the movie “Avatar”, which revealed something about our society (racism, corporate greed, humans v nature, etc). I had a very difficult idea, which was to create a tree which was important in Avatar, after it had been knocked over. I wanted it to be hanging, and look exactly how I envisioned it. I ran into lots of problems during this project, like what my tree artifact would be made of, how I would hang it, or how I would make a box(frame in this case) that was strong enough to hold a tree. In a different world, I would have given up, but because I feel this need to continue, like I know if I try hard enough it will work, I persisted. I came up with ideas, tried different things, asked other people for help. I still worried, and probably spent more time then necessary, but in this case, I was much more grateful for my perfectionism.
It’s funny to me that I didn’t talk about me being a perfectionist in my learning plan, because I have been one for a very long time, and have been aware of it. I know this is something I have to really work on, because it is affecting me negatively more then positively. I want to start coming up with ways that I can balance my perfectionism, so I can still be motivated and passionate, but without the stress and pressure I give myself. When I get to my tPOL, I hope I can say say that I have done at least 1 project where I didn’t drive myself crazy trying to make it the most perfect thing in the world.
Over the past few weeks, I have been creating a project that I could present in the Winter Exhibition. I learned a lot in this process, like how I created my project, or how I should present my project.
Brainstorm:
For my box, I had to create an artifact from the movie “Avatar”, that reflected my theme statement, which I also made off of the movie “Avatar”. My theme statement is, “ More often then not, people will disregard the value and importance of nature for money.”. I made this theme statement because you can see in “Avatar”, the negative relationship between the humans, and the Navi people(the indigenous creatures to the land). After I created my theme statement, I designed an artifact from the movie that I thought connected well with the statement. I choose to make “Home Tree” fallen over, after the humans had cut it down. I thought this would work really well with my theme statement because the humans cut down the tree for a very valuable mineral underneath it, even though they knew it was super important. Now that I had an idea of what I wanted to make, I started actually building it.
Creating:
I started making my project by building the artifact; Home Tree. I used styrofoam to create a base model for the tree and stump, by cutting up different pieces of foam and gluing them together. Then I used natural dry clay to cover the styrofoam, starting to make it look more like a tree. The clay added curves, aswell as texture. I did the same process with the stump, but it took me lots of try’s because I couldn’t get the shape right. After finally getting a stump I thought looked good, I started painting both pieces brown. Then I added the fake moss, which was used as leaves on the tree. Now that I finished the artifact, I made the box. I used wood planks, which I cut to proper size, and then screwed together. After making the two most important parts, I connected them together. I did this by hanging the tree and and stump with fishing line from the top and bottom of the box. I had drilled holes into the top and bottom of the box so I could put the fishing line through. Then I tied the fishing line around the tree, after tying the other end to a part of the box. I did this to the stump once, and the tree three times, so both would stay in place, and hopefully not move/swing. As a final touch, I used leftover moss to cover the bottom of the box, adding a more natural feel to it.
The Presentation:
I had by project done, now I had present it. I presented at the winter exhibition, where anyone could come look at my work. Before I presented it, I had to do a few things. The first thing was planning my room. I had to turn my room into a theme; an abandoned planet. My group worked really well together to gather ideas on how we could do this. We decided to: cover the walls with black paper, have a path on the floor that looked like rocks, and have the door look like a time travel machine. We also had to bring food and drinks, and have an engaging activity for the guests. For food and drinks we pick coke and ice tea, which were supposed to look like polluted water, and brownies+cookies, which were supposed to look like pieces of dirt. For the engaging activity, we chose to have a pile of garbage which we asked guest to pick up, and put in a garbage bin. At the bottom of the pile, there was a flower, representing that we can still make a positive impact, and save the planet. Everyone worked really hard, until we had a room that we liked. We could only start decorating a few hours before presenting, but we got it done. Each person had a spot planned for them, I was somewhere in the middle. I had table, which I had my box project placed on. Then guests started coming, so I started sharing information about my project, like how I made it, or the idea behind it. I had to be very interactive, because most people did not come up and ask me questions, instead I had to start talking, which felt awkward at times, but I slowly got used to it. I did that from 5:30 to 8, so I spent lots of time sharing my project, which I tried to do differently each time.
Lessons Learned:
Having done this project, I have learned the following: I should be more confident it my ideas, I shouldn’t spend to much time planning my project rather then working on it, time management is something I should work on, communication in a team is very important, and how I should be more appreciative of feedback.
This project was a fun and new experience for me, which I am looking forward to doing again.
My Final Piece:
I can use still images to communicate in many different ways. I can show emotions and actions with editing, angles, and other tools in the camera app. To show emotions, I could edit the photo with different tools like exposure, contrast, and saturation to morph the colour into a darker, plainer shade to show sadness or anger. To show an action I could use the timer button, and actually do the motion. I can even use markup to add drawings to enhance the image.
Three skills I found important:
Markup is definitely one of the skills I found most helpful, purely because of its ability to add touches of colour or detail, and emphasize the email thing happening in the photo. Another skill I find the most helpful is centring your photo, which you can do by using a grid on your screen when taking the photo. The grid also helps you have a better understanding of the angles and area in your photo. When using this tool I feel more confident in my photo, and end up with a really good image. The last skill I think is very important is being able to use filters. Filters are quick and easy ways to add depth and detail to your photo, as well as emotion. An example of this is the black and white filter; it can make the photo seem dark or scary, adding the emotion scared. These are the three skills I think are most useful.
My favourite photos I took this week:
I think I am successful PLP learner.
Through my PLP experience I have worked on many projects surrounding different aspects of me, like my worldview and how I see myself. Within these projects I have spent lots of time making sure my work is authentic, and work I am proud of. I always make sure I would be comfortable sharing my work, because that means I am confident in it. I have also had the opportunity to reflect on my work, with the help of peers or classmates. I have used the constructive criticism to improve my final piece. I have ever reached out to others that are not related to PLP whatsoever, so I can have have multiple opinions or suggestions. I can also go to teachers or classmates for help after I have tried to problem solve myself. I believe through all of these experiences, I have become a successful PLP learner.
In my digital selfie project, I had to choose a worldview element and a photo that had parts of that element shown in it. I picked a photo of me and my brother walking in the mountains, and for the worldview element I picked values. I then had to use drawing tools which I had never used before to highlight my values in the photo. Through this project I show how I am as a PLP learner, because I had to ask for help and feedback along the way. I went to friends, and even other kids in my class to get a diverse arrangement of ideas and suggestions. In the end I created a finished piece which I am really proud of. I got to show my talent through this project.
In the Laptop MeMoji project I had the chance to explore a new(to me) app, and learn the different tools in it. I got to create what my laptop would look like as a MeMoji, by decorating it with stickers. I expressed myself with the shapes, colours, and images on the laptop, which I have never gotten to do before. After completing this project, I had to revise it. I had shown it too my friends, and used their feedback to make sure I had all of the criteria on it. After my revision I had something I was much happier about. I got to show my try-again mindset through this project.
For my dream board project I was assigned to create a dream digitally, in drawing form and more classic collage form, with images. I had a really good time experimenting with different photos and drawing tools, as well as thinking about what I want to achieve in the future. I learned a lot about what I value and what I need to have a good life. I asked lots of people for what they thought they could see me doing in the cuter for ideas, any time I was stuck. At the end of the project I had two dream boards, both I was really proud of. I got to show my creativity through this project.
These are all the reasons why I think I am a successful PLP learner.
Welcome to my blog.
I am a very simple person.
I only like my dog, the ocean, and Neko. Everything else is bad.
